Articles about Open Source

For some software, major version numbers are handed out all willy-nilly. For instance, as of today, the Google Chrome web browser sits at version 81, while Mozilla Firefox is at 75. Meanwhile, the Linux kernel is at version 5.x after 29 years! Ultimately, version numbers are determined by the developers and have different levels of meaning -- there are no definitive rules.

Of course, there is one version number that is universally regarded as one of the most important -- 1.0. It is this number that typically (but not always) tells the world that software has left pre-release status and is ready for prime-time. Well, today, Inkscape 1.0 is released for Linux, Windows and macOS. Hilariously, this number is being designated more than 16 years after the initial release of the vector graphics editor! Despite its sub-one version for more than a decade-and-a-half, the open source software has become a trusted and essential tool for people all over the world.

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The Fedora operating system may be named after a hat, but I consider it more similar to an old, worn-in, pair of sneakers. It may not be the trendiest or  flashiest Linux distro, but it is comfortable as hell. Sure, Manjaro and MX Linux may be what the "cool kids" are using these days, but Fedora remains the reliable Linux distribution that is always there for you -- fast, stable, and focused on open source. An old comfortable shoe.

Today, Fedora 32 becomes available for download. It comes with GNOME 3.36 which you can read more about here. If you don't like GNOME, it isn't the end of the world -- you can instead choose KDE Plasma, Cinnamon, MATE, and more. There is even a special ARM variant of Fedora 32 that will work with Raspberry Pi devices.

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Ubuntu 20.04 was released this past Friday, and Linux fans around the world were understandably excited. However, "when it rains, it pours," as they say, because not only is Fedora 32 right around the corner, but today, yet another top-tier distribution gets a new release. This time, it is the Arch Linux-based Manjaro 20, which is code-named "Lysia."

The newest version of the wildly popular operating system can be had with your choice of three desktop environments -- Xfce, GNOME, and KDE Plasma. All three are great, but Xfce is the default for Manjaro. In version 20 of the OS, Xfce gets bumped up to 4.14. Manjaro 20 "Lysis" also gets Linux kernel 5.6 and a new ZFS installation option in Architect. Pamac 9.4 package manager gets support for both flatpaks and snaps by default -- very cool.

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As businesses move to the cloud, they want choice, flexibility, and the ability to easily manage and migrate their critical workloads securely across public clouds, private clouds, and on-premise environments.

To help them achieve this IBM is enhancing the Red Hat OpenShift container platform on IBM Cloud by making OpenShift 4.3 generally available as part of its fully managed service.

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It is a little while since Proton Technologies announced that ProtonVPN was being open sourced to help build trust in the service. Now the company has done the same for the Android version of ProtonMail, and this means that all ProtonMail and ProtonVPN apps are now open source

Just as with ProtonVPN, the open sourcing of ProtonMail opens it up not only to the scrutiny of anyone who cares to trawl through the source code, but it has also been subjected to a third-party security audit.

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There are many desktop Linux distributions these days, but only a handful are significant enough to cause widespread excitement. None have the mainstream attention that Ubuntu does, however -- it is undoubtedly the most popular desktop Linux-based operating system on the planet. Hell, what other distro got mentioned on the wildly popular TV show The Big Bang Theory?

But why is Ubuntu so popular? Despite what some critics may say, Ubuntu's popularity and admiration are absolutely warranted -- there's a reason the distro has been trusted by so many people over the years. Not only is the operating system beautiful, easy to use, and very stable, but there are countless packages and repos available for it, making it a wise choice for both beginners and experts alike. Not to mention, it has a very large online community, making it is easy to find help if needed. Plus, these days, it uses the overall best desktop environment -- GNOME.

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Last month, we told you that System76 was bringing back the iconic Lemur Pro laptop. The company's Lemur laptops are legendary for being sensible, durable, and well balanced. In other words, the computer is a consistent workhorse that is ideal for everyday use and beyond. You can have either Ubuntu or System76's own Ubuntu-based Pop!_OS pre-installed. Best of all, it is reasonably priced too, allowing anyone to own one of the company's computers. Look, If you love Linux, it makes sense to support the community by purchasing a System76 machine.

Sadly, System76 only told us that the Lemur Pro laptop would be available in April. We had no idea of a specific date, leaving many would-be buyers chomping at the bit for more concrete availability information. I am happy to say, we now know exactly when you can but it -- today, as in right now! Yes, you may immediately trade your money for the System76 Lemur Pro.

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Last October, IBM began awarding quarterly grants to encourage diversity and inclusion among the open source community.

The company has today announced the winner of its second grant as Outreachy, an organization that provides internships in Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) for people from under served communities.

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There are many Linux distributions nowadays. Some are unique, but many are largely repetitive and probably don't need to exist. One Linux-based operating system that manages to stand out is Bodhi, thanks to its use of the Moksha desktop environment.

If you aren't familiar with Bodhi, please know it is a lightweight operating system that is based on the great Ubuntu. Today, Bodhi 5.1.0 becomes available. This new version is significant, as it is the first release since development leadership was changed last year.

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If you've been searching for Kodi using Google, you will have noticed that the media playing software has vanished from search results.

The banishment comes after a DMCA takedown request from the Turkish pay-TV service Digiturk. Owned by the beIN Media Group, the DMCA takedown request related not only to the content of a pirated stream, but to the use of a copyrighted logo on suc ha sstream.

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Microsoft has announced plans to acquire npm Inc, the company behind popular JavaScript package manager npm.

No details of the amount of money involved have been revealed, nor the timing of the acquisition, but Microsoft says that it plans to integrate npm into GitHub. Both companies feels that acquisition will help the open source community in general, but the JavaScript community in particular.

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Open source components are the building bricks of many of today's software applications, but this puts them under increased scrutiny with regard to security.

Open source management specialist WhiteSource has released a new report which shows that disclosed open source software vulnerabilities in 2019 skyrocketed to over 6000, up almost 50 percent.

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One of the best things about Linux is having access to all the wonderful desktop environments (DEs). With Linux, you can often customize things to your heart's content, switching environments entirely if you prefer. Conversely, with Windows 10, for example, there is essentially just one user interface. Don't like it? Sucks to be you! If you run Windows, it is Microsoft's way or the highway. True, there is value in having all users sharing one experience, but ultimately, choice will always reign supreme.

Despite there being many great desktop environments available on Linux, only one can be the best. Consistently, for many years now, GNOME has been the greatest DE, and that is still true now. What makes it so wonderful? Well, GNOME 3.x is ideal for  productivity, allowing the user to focus on the task at hand. Not to mention, it is beautiful and simple -- it is a no-nonsense computing experience. There's a reason both Ubuntu and Fedora use GNOME as their default environment.

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Project OWL, the winner of 2018's Call for Code, is a cloud-based analytics tool that assists in organization, whereabouts, and logistics for disaster response.

Today The Linux Foundation is announcing that it's making Project OWL's IoT device firmware open source to help developers around the world build mesh network nodes for global emergency communications networks.

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iXsystems has announced that its two open source operating systems for network attached storage are unifying. Moving forward, FreeNAS and TrueNAS will merge into TrueNAS Open Storage.

Despite the unification, there will still be two versions of the operating system available: TrueNAS CORE and TrueNAS Enterprise. Both are billed as enterprise-quality software, but TrueNAS Enterprise requires a license and offers an extended set of features, while TrueNAS CORE is free.

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